The secretary made the announcement during a press conference at UCF and praised the university for having a comprehensive plan for taking ideas from the research lab to market. UCF was one of 26 institutions to receive a total of $10 million from the department, and one of only two universities to earn both i6 Challenge and Cluster Grants for Seed Capital Funds.

“This achievement is a recognition of the university’s leadership in using innovation and commercialization to help Central Florida recover from the downturn in this region’s manufacturing sector,” Pritzker said.

She described UCF’s approach as well-developed and deserving of both grants.

“This is an exciting day for UCF, the region and the state,” said Thomas O’Neal, associate vice president of the Office of Research and Commercialization at UCF who has led UCF’s I-Corps project, which is one of the reasons UCF was named a winner of both grants. “We are working with partners and industry to make Central Florida an epicenter for innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship. UCF has had much success through a variety of programs in helping some of our students and community members take great ideas through the commercialization and marketing process. These grants will enhance our ability to help more future entrepreneurs across five counties.”

The counties are Orange, Seminole, Brevard, Osceola and Volusia. Building on the resources developed at UCF over the past 15 years, the i6 grant will support the university’s new I-Corps project’s “Proof of Concept Center,” where talented engineers from the five counties hardest-hit by changes in the local economy can translate new products – like technology for stronger and quicker prosthetic limbs – into businesses. The commerce grant is for $500,000 with another $500,000 in matching funds.

The center’s mission will be supported by a second $249,933 grant for UCF’s StarterCorps Seed Fund, which will deploy early-stage capital into innovative technology and advanced manufacturing startups across Central Florida.

This program addresses the gap in seed funding for local entrepreneurs – which is considered one of the largest barriers faced by startups around the country, and Central Florida’s tech startups are no exception.

UCF I-Corps helps teams of innovators go through all the necessary steps before taking an item to market and uses the College of Engineering and Computer Science Maker Spaces created with generous industry partners at UCF to help them through idea, design and prototyping. O’Neal estimates that in the fifth year of the program 195 companies will be created, producing 1,730 new high-wage jobs through the Maker Spaces teams.

The Economic Development Administration’s Seed Fund Grant will be used to raise, deploy and manage a $5 million evergreen StarterCorps Seed Fund that will be deployed in innovative technology and advanced manufacturing startups in Central Florida. Specifically, StarterCorps will provide the most promising and high potential teams access to incremental rounds of seed funding that will be critical in maturing these “Starter” teams into companies that are attractive to angel groups, early-stage venture capitalists and federal SBIR – Small Business Innovation Research agencies.

Starter Studio is a three-month program that surrounds technology entrepreneurs (called “Starters”) located in the Canvs co-working space in downtown Orlando with a curated educational program, constant exposure to successful technology startup founders, and the opportunity to pitch their companies in a well-attended Demo Day showcase event. Starter Studio, which was organically funded with a Kickstarter campaign, had 64 teams apply from which thirteen were selected.

The $10 million awarded Monday nationwide comes from the Commerce Department’s Regional Innovation Strategies (RIS) program, which is being run by the Department’s Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE). The program is designed to advance innovation and capacity-building activities in regions across the country through three different types of grants: i6 Challenge grants, Cluster Grants for Seed Capital Funds, and Science and Research Park Development Grants. Secretary Pritzker announced the recipients of the first two funding opportunities today. Recipients of the third grant will be announced in the coming weeks.

The event began Saturday at 11 a.m. and lasted 20 hours, ending 8 a.m. Sunday. More than 1,100 students attended and helped UCF go from the 12th largest Miracle Network dance marathon in the nation to the 7th largest. Knight-thon exceeded its goal of $500,000 and became the sixth largest amount raised this year across all children’s Miracle Network dance marathons.

“I am absolutely speechless,” said Drew Strochak, Knight-Thon director. “Over 1,000 students came together for one cause, and truly created a legacy for Knight-thon. Every penny of what we raised goes to the hospitals, and I am so proud to be a part of that.”

Knight-Thon increased its annual donation by 57 percent from last year’s $392,831, and has now raised more than $1.8 million for UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital, Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and the Neonatal Care Unit of Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies.

The National Collegian of the Year Award is presented annually to one outstanding member of Delta Sigma Pi, recognizing this individual for his or her contributions, achievements, participation and personal character. The award is the highest honor that collegiate members of Delta Sigma Pi can be honored with.

In his four semesters of involvement with Delta Sigma Pi, Fekany has held three leadership positions. His roles as LEAD/SGA chair, vice president of chapter operations and ultimately chapter president led to his nomination for the award.

“To even be nominated amongst my peers in a hundred-member chapter is an honor, but to go through and become the regional Collegian [of the Year] is really rewarding, and it’s humbling,” Fekany remarked. “Getting this award is really special.”

Fekany received the award at the Southern LEAD Provincial Conference in Birmingham, Alabama earlier this month. The conference focuses on educational development for all DSP members. Students had the opportunity to attend panels, discussions, and breakout sessions regarding leadership development and personal success.

Delta Sigma Pi is a professional business fraternity organized to foster the study of business in universities. The organization seeks to enhance members’ professional development and leadership skills, while providing an opportunity to give back to the community and build lifelong friendships.

Delta Sigma Pi will be recruiting new members in the Fall 2015 semester, and accepts students from all business majors and class standings. Learn more at http://dspucf.com.

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/ucfbusiness-student-awarded-top-delta-sigma-pi-honor/feed/0#UCFBusiness Student Awarded Top Delta Sigma Pi Honor#UCFBusiness Student Awarded Top Delta Sigma Pi HonorNew Study Shows Sweet 16 Teams Achieving Academic Successhttp://today.ucf.edu/new-study-shows-sweet-16-teams-achieving-academic-success/
http://today.ucf.edu/new-study-shows-sweet-16-teams-achieving-academic-success/#commentsFri, 27 Mar 2015 14:39:57 +0000https://today.ucf.edu/?p=65256The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida College of Business Administration (#UCFBusiness) has released a new study on the Graduation Success Rates and Academic Progress Rates of the teams in the NCAA Division I Women’s and Men’s Sweet 16.

Richard Lapchick, Ph.D., the primary author of the study, is the director of TIDES and chair of the DeVos Sport Business Management Graduate Program. The study was co-authored this year by Evanna Howell and Maclin Simpson.

“And no matter whether we look at women’s or men’s college basketball, there is a gap between the graduation rates of white and African-American basketball student-athletes. The fact that this year’s numbers are much better than last year is a clear indication that the academic reforms instituted more than a decade ago have helped.”

Five schools have teams in both the men and women’s 2015 Sweet 16 fields: Duke University, Gonzaga University, University of Louisville, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and University of Notre Dame. Duke University, Gonzaga University, and University of Notre Dame achieved the highest level of success on the court and in the classroom.

The Vagina Monologues, presented by UCF Victim Services, will be performed and put on by students Saturday, March 28.

Doors to the Pegasus Ballroom inside the Student Union will open at 6 p.m. for pre-show activities, and the show will start at 7 p.m. Free parking will be available in Garage F.

The Vagina Monologues is open to students, faculty, staff and members of the community, though it is intended for mature audiences. Admission is free, but donations for The Zebra Coalition, which supports LGBTQ+ youth, will be accepted.

The Vagina Monologues, by playwright Eve Ensler, has been performed around the country.

The play has spawned V-Day, a global movement designed to celebrate and honor women and speak out against violence. Concurrent V-Day events worldwide will increase awareness and raise money and attention for the fight to stop violence against women and girls.

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/v-day-event-will-celebrate-women-speak-violence/feed/0V-Day Event Will Celebrate Women, Speak Out Against ViolenceA 2014 performance of The Vagina Monologues also included an all-student cast and crew.V-Day Event Will Celebrate Women, Speak Out Against ViolenceA 2014 performance of The Vagina Monologues also included an all-student cast and crew.Florida’s Economy Experiencing March Madness, Disney Stylehttp://today.ucf.edu/floridas-economy-experiencing-march-madness-disney-style/
http://today.ucf.edu/floridas-economy-experiencing-march-madness-disney-style/#commentsThu, 26 Mar 2015 15:19:48 +0000https://today.ucf.edu/?p=65241Florida is experiencing a different kind of March Madness – it’s called Frozen madness, and residents should be thankful.

“Tourists are flocking to Florida, many of them wanting to build a snowman with Olaf or to sing ’Let it Go’ with Elsa, and that’s driving a good part of Florida’s economic upswing,” said Sean Snaith, a University of Central Florida economist and director of the UCF Institute for Economic Competitiveness. “As a parent I dread it, but as a resident, I say bring it on.”

Construction, professional and businesses services, and leisure and hospitality are among the sectors seeing the most job growth according to Snaith’s March 2015 Florida Forecast released today.

“Not to get all Disney on you, but it seems Cinderella has arrived at the ball and she’s not leaving at midnight. She’ll be there at least through 2018,” Snaith said, equating Florida to another Disney character.

The new forecast indicates that housing starts, labor-force participation, personal income, gross domestic product and even retails sales will be growing over the next few years.

It’s quite a change from the recession years that saw Florida with some of the highest unemployment rates in the nation along with declines in most economic indicators.

The situation is so good that some people who had given up looking for work because they couldn’t find any are starting to actively look for jobs again. This is evidenced by a labor-force participation rate that is rising from 59.9 to 60.2 percent, according to Snaith.

For a look at the entire forecast including a breakdown by metropolitan region click here.

Among the highlights:

Payroll job growth year over year should average 3.1 percent in 2015, 2.5 percent in 2016, 2.1 percent in 2017, and 1.9 percent in 2018. Payrolls will recover to their prerecession highs in the 3rd quarter of this year.

Labor force growth in Florida will average 2.2 percent from 2015 to 2018. The faster pace of job creation has breathed new life into Florida’s labor market. The improved prospect of finding a job is putting more Floridians back on the job hunt.

The sectors expected to have the strongest average job growth during 2015-2018 are construction (8.8 percent), professional and business services (4.3 percent), trade, transportation and utilities (3.6 percent), leisure & hospitality (2.6 percent), and education and health services (2.4 percent).

Housing starts continue to rise, but the pace of increase will slow as interest rates rise. Total starts will be over 107,000 in 2015, just over 128,000 in 2016, hit 145,300 in 2017, and level off at 150,600 in 2018. Multifamily starts will hold a historically high share of total starts.

During 2015-2018, real personal income growth will accelerate and average 3.8 percent, with 4.3 percent growth in 2015 easing to 3.6 percent growth in 2018.

Retail sales will grow at an average pace of 4.8 percent during 2015-2018, helped by lower gasoline prices (from a year ago) that are raising consumer confidence and disposable income.

Snaith is a national expert in economics, forecasting, market sizing and economic analysis who authors quarterly reports on the state of the economy. Bloomberg News has named Snaith as one of the country’s most accurate forecasters for his predictions about the Federal Reserve’s benchmark interest rate, the Federal Funds rate.

Snaith also is a member of several national forecasting panels, including those of The Wall Street Journal Economic Forecasting Survey, the CNNMoney.com survey of leading economists, the Associated Press Economy Survey, the National Association for Business Economics Quarterly Outlook Survey, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Survey of Professional Forecasters, the Livingston Survey, the Bloomberg U.S. Economic Indicator Survey, the Reuters U.S. Economy Survey, and the USA Today Economic Survey.

The Institute for Economic Competitiveness strives to provide complete, accurate and timely national, state and regional forecasts and economic analyses. Through these analyses, the institute provides valuable resources to the public and private sectors for informed decision-making.

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/floridas-economy-experiencing-march-madness-disney-style/feed/0Florida’s Economy Experiencing March Madness, Disney StyleFlorida’s Economy Experiencing March Madness, Disney StyleCEDHP Showcase Preps Students for Campus-Wide Undergraduate Research Exhibitionhttp://today.ucf.edu/cedhp-showcase-preps-students-campus-wide-undergraduate-research-exhibition/
http://today.ucf.edu/cedhp-showcase-preps-students-campus-wide-undergraduate-research-exhibition/#commentsThu, 26 Mar 2015 14:45:13 +0000https://today.ucf.edu/?p=65237The semi-annual Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings for students in the College of Education and Human Performance took place Wednesday, March 18th in the Teaching Academy on the UCF campus. Once again offering an opportunity for students to present proposed research or projects currently underway, the showcase is an invaluable experience for students to receive in-progress feedback from faculty mentors, staff, and even information and research experts from the UCF Library system.

“This year, people took it to a whole other level,” said Pryia Persaud, SURF Club president and organizer for the Showcase. “Instead of just posters, they created binders and brought all of their research, all of their questions, and everything they found with them to accompany their presentations. (CEDHP) has never really had enough posters and presentations to participate in the University-wide showcase, but now we do and we have our own category for the College of Education and Human Performance. That’s something we have wanted to do since last year and we were able to accomplish that goal this year.”

The spring showcase, held in room 117 in the Teaching Academy this time around, had expanded space available for presenters, and there were more than enough students participating to fill the space.

“We have around 34 presenters this time, and the majority of our presenters come from a research class that has started in the College,” Morgan Futch, graduate assistant for the CEDHP Office of Research tells us. “During the class they learn about research and are then asked as one of their final projects to present here at this poster presentation. And if they are really dedicated or get pretty excited about research, we encourage them to apply for SURE. In the end we’re hoping that we get more of our students involved there because they haven’t necessarily been in the past.”

Posters and projects once again covered a wide range of topics and research areas, from teacher retention and professional development to the benefits and impacts of recess on student success.

“My research project investigates the correlation between free, unstructured recess during the school day and development of leadership abilities or qualities,” student and presenter Meridith Doerstling tells us. “I really appreciated all the time we took in class to share with each other and Dr. Wise, and I got a lot of feedback and was able to refine a lot of what I had. So I felt a lot more confident about what I was able to put on my board and present today at the Showcase.”

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/cedhp-showcase-preps-students-campus-wide-undergraduate-research-exhibition/feed/0CEDHP Showcase Preps Students for Campus-Wide Undergraduate Research ExhibitionFaculty reviewed presentations and provided valuable feedback at the CEDHP Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings March 18th.CEDHP Showcase Preps Students for Campus-Wide Undergraduate Research ExhibitionFaculty reviewed presentations and provided valuable feedback at the CEDHP Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings March 18th.Students Selected for UCF’s Highest Awardhttp://today.ucf.edu/students-honored-prestigious-award/
http://today.ucf.edu/students-honored-prestigious-award/#commentsWed, 25 Mar 2015 16:43:44 +0000https://today.ucf.edu/?p=65220Nineteen UCF students, a mix of undergraduate and graduate students, have been selected for UCF’s highest student honor.

The Order of Pegasus recognizes exemplary performance by undergraduate students in the areas of academic achievement, outstanding university involvement, leadership and community service. Graduate students are selected separately based on academic achievement, professional or community service, leadership and publication or research experiences.

Because of the breadth of accomplishments required for this award, the Order of Pegasus is the most prestigious and significant student award that can be attained at UCF.

The Order of Pegasus committee selected 19 students for this honor from 78 nominations.

The students selected held multiple memberships in LEAD Scholars (7), President’s Leadership Council (9), The Burnett Honors College (10), Greek organizations (6) and Student Government Association (2). There are two students from our partner DirectConnect institutions, Valencia College and Seminole State. There are seven male undergraduates, eight female undergraduates, one female master’s student, one male doctoral and professional student, and two female doctoral and professional students.

The inductees will be honored at an invitation-only ceremony in April. The names and a picture of the inductees will be added to the wall of the Pegasus Lounge, which is located on the second floor of the Student Union overlooking the Pegasus Ballroom. They also receive commemorative medals, Student Government Association scholarships and lifetime memberships to the UCF Alumni Association.

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/students-honored-prestigious-award/feed/0Students Selected for UCF’s Highest AwardEach Order of Pegasus student will receive a commemorative medal.UCF Video Game School Ranked 2nd in North Americahttp://today.ucf.edu/ucf-video-game-school-ranked-2nd/
http://today.ucf.edu/ucf-video-game-school-ranked-2nd/#commentsWed, 25 Mar 2015 13:05:55 +0000https://today.ucf.edu/?p=65210For the second consecutive year, the University of Central Florida’s video game graduate school ranks No. 2 in North America, according to The Princeton Review and PC Gamer magazine.

This is the fifth time that The Princeton Review has ranked graduate-level video game development schools, placing UCF’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy – or FIEA – behind only the University of Utah for 2015. The school has been ranked in the top five every year since the rankings began.

“With our 10-year anniversary approaching, it’s great to see the Princeton Review continue to recognize the outstanding work of our faculty, staff and students,” said executive director Ben Noel. “We’re proud to be part of Central Florida’s growing digital economy.”

Since opening its doors in 2005, FIEA has graduated 412 alumni working at more than 125 companies around the world, including Google, Electronic Arts, Blizzard, Bungie, Zynga, Ubisoft, Disney, Microsoft, Bethesda, n-Space and Industrial Light & Magic.

“FIEA’s exceptional faculty members, first-class facilities and close connections with the gaming industry’s top companies have propelled the school to one of the very best of its kind in the country in less than 10 years,” said UCF Provost and Vice President A. Dale Whittaker. “This is a testament to UCF’s success with location-based education and valuable partnerships – our students thrive in the classroom and in the job market when they learn in an environment so closely immersed in their industry.”

The average starting salary for recent FIEA graduates is $60,359 and they are working on some of today’s most popular projects. Those games include NBA Live 15, Diablo III, Sunset Overdrive, Skyrim, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3, Star Wars 1313, Borderlands 2, Battlefield 4, The Walking Dead, Gears of War 3, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, Bioshock Infinite, Transformers 3 and Dead Space 3.

The school is located at UCF’s Center For Emerging Media building, located in downtown Orlando near UCF’s future downtown campus. FIEA is designed to graduate talented and well-qualified professionals to work in video games, new media, film and simulation industries.

The Princeton Review chose the schools based on a survey it conducted in 2014-15 of 150 institutions offering game design coursework and/or degrees in the United States, Canada, and some countries abroad.

In addition to being published today on The Princeton Review website, the listing will also be featured in the May issue of PC Gamer magazine, on newsstands March 3.

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/ucf-video-game-school-ranked-2nd/feed/0UCF Video Game School Ranked 2nd in North AmericaUCF Video Game School Ranked 2nd in North AmericaTransfer Students Explore their Future at UCFhttp://today.ucf.edu/transfer-students-explore-future-ucf/
http://today.ucf.edu/transfer-students-explore-future-ucf/#commentsTue, 24 Mar 2015 18:31:23 +0000https://today.ucf.edu/?p=65188Transfer and Transition Services held the 3rd annual “SEE UCF” program. The program was hosted at UCF FAIRWINDS Alumni Center with 148 Valencia College students attendance.

Students received a VIP look at key elements of UCF success such as academic colleges and Student Development and Enrollment Services Career Services, Office of Student Involvement, Knight Camp tours as well as housing tours emphasizing the “Transfer Connections Living Learning Community.”

At day’s end, students received a special visit from Knightro and participated in a drawing conducted by a UCF football player in which three students won a free class at Valencia College.

The SEE UCF program encourages students to get excited about their future transfer. A testimonial from the program survey demonstrated this excitement: “It was exactly how I imagined… fun, lots of experience, pretty great information was given to me. I can’t wait to be a Knight!”

This excitement encourages early decision making and preparation for choosing a major and taking the correct prerequisites before transferring to UCF.

Transfer and Transition Services is a department of the Division of Student Development and Enrollment Services.

]]>http://today.ucf.edu/transfer-students-explore-future-ucf/feed/0Transfer Students Explore their Future at UCFStudents take a photo opp at the See UCF program.